1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a food freezer, more particularly, relates to a food freezer for continuously liquid freezing large edible meat blocks.
2. Related Art Statement
Methods for freezing and preserving food such as edible meat are roughly classified into a freezing method by blasting cold air to these foodstuffs and a freezing method by immersing foodstuffs into an anti-freeze liquid refrigerated by a refrigerant.
However, the former method tends to cause freezing unevenness, and a freezing rate is slow. Therefore, in case of freezing food of large shape, a very long period of time is required, and as a result, productivity becomes low, the time for passing through a maximum freezing forming temperature zone (i.e -1.degree. C. to -10.degree. C.) is long and a drip phenomenon is liable to occur at the time of defrosting.
On the other hand, the liquid freezing does not cause freezing unevenness and has a quick freezing rate so as to provide such advantages that productivity is high and no drip occurs at the time of defrosting.
Therefore, a liquid freezing system recently attracts attention, and such freezers have been developed.
However, many freezers for liquid freezing available on the market at present aim at relatively small-shaped food, and a batch type is often employed for freezing food as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,165,256.
However, with the recent increase of a demand of frozen food, there is a strong request for a device which can freeze large-shaped food under continuously high productivity.
The present invention relates to a device developed according to the demand, and aims to provide a food freezer which can continuously liquid freeze, for example, even a large meat block of about 1 ton by weight and remarkably improve productivity at the time of freezing.